Fitchburg Fire Department received a thank you note from brothers they saved in November 2014. (Photo credit: Fitchburg Fire Department)

FITCHBURG (CBS) — Two Fitchburg brothers who were seriously burned by a bonfire explosion say they owe their lives to the firefighters who saved them.

On November 15, 2014, Jameson Carroll, 13, and his brother Jaxon Carroll, 11, were at a bonfire in the backyard of their home. Their mother went inside to get more marshmallows, when one of the boys tried to keep the fire going. Investigators believe one of the boys had thrown gasoline into the fire when the can exploded.

In a letter to the Fitchburg Fire Department, Jaxon said when firefighters arrived, he knew “everything was going to be alright.”

“I felt comfortable and safe in your hands,” Jaxon wrote.

Photo credit: Fitchburg Fire Department

At the time, fire officials said younger brother Jaxon was more seriously injured. He suffered first and second degree burns to his face and was flown to Memorial Medical Center in Worcester. Jameson suffered less severe burns to his legs.

Jameson said that thanks to the firefighter’s swift actions, he is fully recovered and has now returned to playing sports.

Photo credit: Fitchburg Fire Department

“Not a single day goes by that I don’t thank God that my sons’ lives weren’t lost that night, ” the boys’ mother wrote in her card.

Photo credit: Fitchburg Fire Department

“In the fire service not all incidents turn out positive but we’re very glad that this one did,” Fitchburg Fire Department wrote in response to the family’s notes.